N. Ireland Foes Reach Accord

Still, analysts here cautioned that creating a new assembly would not erase sectarian divisions dating back centuries. Ancient rivalries are still on display daily in the province, where "nationalist" or "republican" Catholics favor unification with the Republic of Ireland and "unionist" or "loyalist" Protestants remain fiercely loyal to the British crown.

"It's like the emperor's new clothes -- people are pretending to see something that isn't there," said Pete Shirlow, a senior lecturer at Queen's University in Belfast who specializes in conflict resolution. Shirlow said that despite the prosperity brought by peace, Northern Ireland remains deeply segregated.

He said 70 percent of the population still lives in communities that are almost exclusively Protestant or Catholic, and 90 percent of children study in schools dominated by one denomination. Nearly two-thirds of people between 14 and 24 have never had a substantial conversation with someone of the other faith, he added, and mixed marriages remain extremely uncommon.

"We are living together in isolation, purposefully apart," Shirlow said. He noted that Paisley and Adams have agreed to govern together but their parties have rarely discussed serious efforts to integrate neighborhoods and schools.

While Monday's announcement affects everything from water rates to hospitals to pothole repair, it was the sight of Paisley and Adams sitting together that left most people here dumbstruck. Their joint public appearance lasted less than 20 minutes but was filled with signs of the subtlety of the tribal divisions here.

Paisley opened with a commitment to improving the lives of "people in this part of the United Kingdom," his choice of words underscoring loyalists' insistence that the province is a part of Britain. He pledged to have "regular meetings" with McGuinness between now and May 8 and said he and Adams had agreed to press the British government for the best possible economic assistance package.

Many Catholics here have said they sensed a softening in Paisley's hard line in recent months. Many believe Paisley was ready to start governing with Sinn Fein as of Monday but that he had failed to persuade more extreme elements in his party.

On Monday, Paisley sounded both stern and willing to compromise. "We must not allow our justified loathing for the horrors and atrocities of the past to become a barrier to creating a better and more stable future for our children," he said in his booming baritone. "As we look to that future, we must never forget those who suffered during the dark period from which we are, please God, now emerging."

Adams stressed his commitment to "the people of Ireland" and the "people of this island," his phrasing reflecting the republican view of Northern Ireland as rightfully part of the divided island of Ireland. He dotted his speech with sentences in Irish Gaelic, the national language of Ireland, which British governments of the past have outlawed. On his lapel he wore a lily to commemorate those who died in the 1916 Irish rebellion against British rule.

Monday's agreement "created the potential to build a new, harmonious and equitable relationship between nationalists and republicans and unionists, and all of the rest of the people of the island of Ireland," Adams said.

Adams and Paisley did not speak to each other while the cameras were rolling. At the end of their remarks, Adams looked toward Paisley as if he wanted to shake hands. Paisley looked down and shuffled his papers.